Race report
World Superbike Sepang
Davies denies Rea's title celebrations with race two win
0.091s between the two riders at the flag as Torres equals personal best in third.
Edited: Sep 18, 2015, 4:43 PM
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Chaz Davies (Aruba.it Racing – Ducati SBK Team) has won the second WorldSBK race of the 2015 Pirelli Malaysian Round after a spectacular last-lap battle with Jonathan Rea (Kawasaki Racing Team), which saw the two riders separated by 0.091s at the line. This fraction of a second did not allow the series leader to clinch the title on Sunday at the Sepang International Circuit.
Unlike in Race 1, it was Welshman Davies who attempted pull to away from the rest of the field, with champion elect Rea giving chase. The factory Ducati rider managed to keep a fast pace until the last two laps, when series leader Rea began his final charge to the top; after losing the lead in the last sector, Davies hit the brakes as late as he could at the final left-hander to get the better of his rival as the two touched mid-turn.
I am really happy because we got another first and second on a race weekend and a bagful of points.
Jonathan Rea
Jordi Torres (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) made the right changes to his RSV4 RF machine between the day’s two races, the Spanish WorldSBK rookie able to lap consistently in the 2.06s bracket for the duration of Race 2 to claim his second podium finish of the season.
Sylvain Guintoli (Pata Honda World Superbike) scored another fourth position to complete his best weekend of the season so far ahead of team-mate Michael van der Mark, who made up for his Race 1 retirement with a fine fifth as he edged Leon Haslam (Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils) by a tenth of a second.
David Salom (Team Pedercini), Alex Lowes (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), Matteo Baiocco (Althea Racing) and Roman Ramos (Team Go Eleven) were seventh to tenth respectively, with Niccolò Canepa (Althea Racing), Leon Camier (MV Agusta Reparto Corse), Randy de Puniet (Voltcom Crescent Suzuki), Tom Sykes (Kawasaki Racing Team) and Leandro Mercado (Barni Racing) completing the points positions.
Following his return to the podium in Race 1, Max Biaggi (Aprilia Racing Team) found himself on the receiving end of a collision also involving the still-reigning WorldSBK Champion Guintoli as well as the aforementioned Sykes and Lowes. Unlike Biaggi, Englishman Sykes did not fall off his bike, although he lost several positions.
Having dropped to 17th place by the end of Lap 1, the former title winner began a recovery ride but crashed at Turn 9 five laps later; he remounted his ZX-10R, eventually claiming 14th place.
Chaz Davies #7 - Aruba.it Racing - Ducati SBK Team
Race 1 2nd Race 2 1st
“Race 1 went really well, especially considering where we were yesterday, when I was thinking we’d do well to finish top six. Anyway, we made some changes overnight that put us in a position to fight for the win, though we were still missing something in the last laps. Then in race 2 I saw that Johnny was closing in and it took everything I had to hold him off.I’m so pleased about today’s results, obtained at one of the most difficult tracks for us. This shows how much progress we’ve made up until now. I’m also pleased to have moved into second place in the standings. Thanks go to my whole team, the guys have done a fantastic job here!”
Jonathan Rea #65 - Kawasaki Racing Team
Race 1 1st Race 2 2nd
“I’m really happy after a good weekend and happy to go into the summer break healthy and looking forward to Jerez. With three laps to go in race two Arturo my mechanic gave me a bit of a secret signal and I knew if I went then I could catch Chaz. Halfway around the last lap I realised it would be possible. I passed Chaz and went through clean. We had contact but I do not blame him for that – I would do the same – but I almost crashed at the same time. I am really happy because we got another first and second on a race weekend and a bagful of points.”
Jordi Torres #81 - Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils
Race 1 10th Race 2 3rd
“First of all I would like to thank my team, because between the two races they have done an incredible job in change the bike setup, especially regarding the electronics and the engine braking. This allowed me to ride smoother. If I followed my instincts I would have ridden a bit more aggressively but in race two I managed the tyres much better and so I was able to finish on the podium. It seems like this year I get good results in the second race only if I struggle in the first one. It was an important race for me as I’ve learned a lot. I cannot wait for Jerez, where I’ll be able to give my best.”
Max Biaggi #3 - Aprilia Racing Team
Race 1 3rd Race 2 DNF
“The podium is an incredible result. It is a challenge overcome, the challenge of raising the bar to something that no one had ever done before. My race pace was consistent. After overtaking my team mates I began to focus on Sykes who was getting closer and closer. I managed to catch him up and overtake him right at the last lap. I'm super happy, this is the result I was dreaming of. Now that the weekend is over I can reveal that my crash during the tests last week “gave” me a left shoulder dislocation and an injury that required stitches on my right ankle. It was mainly the shoulder that bothered me, especially in the more flowing parts of the track. But we gritted our teeth and everything went brilliantly.”
WorldSBK Sepang - Race 2
1 - Chaz Davies Aruba.it Racing - Ducati Superbike Team
2 - Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team +0.091
3 - Jordi Torres Aprilia Racing Team - Red Devils +5.008
WorldSBK Sepang - Race 1
1 - Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team
2 - Chaz Davies Aruba.it Racing - Ducati Superbike Team +0.121
3 - Max Biaggi Aprilia Racing Team +10.695
Standings (10 of 13 rounds completed)
1 - Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team 452
2 - Chaz Davies Aruba.it Racing - Ducati Superbike Team 308 (-144)
3 - Tom Sykes Kawasaki Racing Team 295 (-157)
WSBK
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